Meditations with Pastor Tom (4/3/20)

"This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." ~ Psalm 118:24

            Hard to feel like rejoicing these days, isn't it?  The Coronavirus has changed our world in ways we have never experienced.  Unemployment has skyrocketed.  Some have contracted the disease.  Some have died.  We can almost consider ourselves lucky if the worst that happens to us is watching our retirement funds shrink as the stock market plummets. The luckiest of us are mostly just inconvenienced.  We're confined to our homes and denied some of our entertainment options like sports and dining out.   But make no mistake: All of us are affected.

            Rejoice?  C'mon! You've got to be kidding me.  I admit, the idea of rejoicing right now seems like a reach, to say the least.  And I don't want to give you a rah-rah speech full of positive thinking blather that makes you feel better for about 10 minutes.  But I would hope that maybe we could look around and see how God is still working in the world. 

            I was going to make a long list of the things we can still rejoice about  (like the onset of spring, the lives of loved ones, the opportunity to help others in new ways), but I decided it's better if you come up with your own.  I hope you do.

            But, let me remind you of a few that maybe you haven't thought so much about.  God is still speaking.  God is still always with you, and for you, and working in your best interests. God is still there for you as a refuge, a comfort, and a source of strength.  God loves to hear from you.  God never tires of hearing your voice, even if you're just complaining about the way things are right now.  God loves you unconditionally and with such extravagance that we can scarce imagine it.  God cries when you cry and laughs when you laugh. God lives in you and gives you every good thing your heart really needs.

            Believe me, I understand when the world weighs us down so hard, it can be difficult to rejoice about something as seemingly abstract as God.  But if you can, I know that when you turn your eyes to see God still speaking and still working in the world, you will indeed be able to say, "This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."

The Sermon this Sunday

There were two parades that day - and for very good reason.